The publication of our December Policy Monitor coincides with the first anniversary of the tragic downing of Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which resulted in the deaths of all 176 passengers on board. The anniversary of the tragedy has been commemorated online under the hashtags #PS752 and #IWillLightACandleToo, inContinue reading “Policy Monitor – December 2020”
Author Archives: Melody Kazemi
Artificial Intelligence & Digital Rights in Iran: An Introduction
AI and Closed Countries: Why Context Matters Ever-evolving networked technologies continue to shape us all, with the Internet fundamentally transforming the ways our societies, governments and the private technology sector operate, and interact. Nearly 30 years on since the birth of the commercial Internet – the World Wide Web – its initial promises to deliverContinue reading “Artificial Intelligence & Digital Rights in Iran: An Introduction”
Policy Monitor – November 2020
In November, the Supreme Council for Cyberspace failed to meet for a second month, while the Majles finally voted for two MPs to fill the two parliamentary seats in the Committee for Determining Instances of Criminal Content also known as the country’s internet filtering committee. Conditions for Iran’s gig workers also made headlines as driversContinue reading “Policy Monitor – November 2020”
Policy Monitor – October 2020
The publication of this month’s Policy Monitor coincides with the first anniversary of the violent crackdown during the November 2019 fuel price protests which broke out across Iran following the sudden announcement of fuel price increases. As Iranians took to the streets across the country to make their voices heard, the country plunged into darknessContinue reading “Policy Monitor – October 2020”
Policy Monitor – September 2020
This September, the Supreme Council for Cyberspace returned to work after a two-month absence, holding two meetings. This month also marked further infrastructural developments relating to the National Information Network (NIN), as ICT Minister Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi claimed that all of the country’s schools ‘have been connected to the National Information Network’. At the sameContinue reading “Policy Monitor – September 2020”
What Does Iran’s 11th Parliament Mean for the Internet?
Against a backdrop of a historically low voter turnout at 42.6%, the conservative and principalists secured a massive majority in the Majles (Iran’s Parliament) during this February’s parliamentary elections. It has now been a few months since the 11th Parliament began its term. With political alliances consolidating, and the parliament deciding its agenda and setting prioritiesContinue reading “What Does Iran’s 11th Parliament Mean for the Internet?”
Policy Monitor – August 2020
Yet another month passed without a meeting of Iran’s primary internet policy making body, the Supreme Council for Cyberspace. This continued inactivity led parliament to voice their dissatisfaction by proposing a new bill to drive forward the completion of the National Information Network. Meanwhile, an updated text for the alarming “Managing Social Messaging Apps” BillContinue reading “Policy Monitor – August 2020”
Policy Monitor – July 2020
This month, online activism by Iranians with the #DontExecute (In Persian #اعدام_نکنید) made global trends, which called for the revocation of execution orders issued against three young men arrested during the November 2019 protests. The popular hashtag was followed by a string of internet disruptions, which are documented in full in July’s Network Monitor. Meanwhile,Continue reading “Policy Monitor – July 2020”
Policy Monitor – June 2020
In the June edition of Policy Monitor, we bring you the latest following the first meeting of the Supreme Council for Cyberspace in four months and the first in the current Iranian calendar. A recent session saw the SCC pass an important new resolution on the National Information Network – a project which continues toContinue reading “Policy Monitor – June 2020”
Policy Monitor – May 2020
With their attention still largely consumed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Iranian authorities have continued to move slowly on internet policy. Although it was another relatively quiet month for digital rights developments, May was far from uneventful elsewhere. According to official figures in May, Iran saw another significant increase in COVID-19 cases, following the relaxationContinue reading “Policy Monitor – May 2020”